


the greatest loss

by V_e_s_a_n_u_s



Series: Whumptober 2018 [4]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, Deep Roads, F/M, Love, Ogres, Violence, Whumptober, hurt my heart just a lil
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-04
Updated: 2018-10-04
Packaged: 2019-07-25 08:04:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16193471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/V_e_s_a_n_u_s/pseuds/V_e_s_a_n_u_s
Summary: Day number 4 of #whumptober! Prompt was "No, stop!" (so you know it's gonna hurt XD)It was just another mission in the Deep Roads. They faced the usual, a bunch of darkspawn and an ogre turned up. But this time, something went horribly wrong, and one of them... isn't walking away from this one.





	the greatest loss

The Deep Roads hadn’t heard such noise since the dwarves retreated. 

The cold sound of metal ringing against metal reverberated in the caves as the party’s polished swords clashed with the crude weapons of the darkspawn. The fizzle of magic was hanging in the air, crackling every time Morrigan cast a spell that arced over the battlefield, narrowly missing stalactites, before it struck its target. 

“This really gets the blood pumping!” Zevran yelled over the noise, slashing his daggers all around him like a deadly dance, disappearing from view for a moment, before reappearing behind a hurlock and digging a blade into its neck. 

“Zevran, you’re  _ mad!” _ Elissa yelled back, raising her shield to block an axe swinging down near her head.

The elf laughed in response, “And it’s why you keep me around, no?”

“Or maybe,” Alistair countered, distracting the genlocks gathered around the elf to give him better access to their weak points, “She’s just worried you’ll assassinate her if we  _ don’t  _ keep you around.”

“Absolute children,” Morrigan sighed, and they all laughed at her disgusted tone. 

The number of darkspawn around them seemed to be thinning, although Elissa could tell there were more close by. She had just finished off those she had taken on when the ground started shaking with thunderous footsteps. Elissa turned to face where the sounds were coming from, and she could see at the end of a tunnel, a figure appear out of the darkness.

There was a loud roar, ripping its way from the throat of an ogre stamping around the corner, spit flying from between its canines. Elissa gave a rallying cry of her own, sword raised high as she charged at the beast. Alistair’s head whipped around, slicing another darkspawn in half as he did, before chasing her for support.

“Where do they even  _ keep _ these?!” Elissa shouted, slicing at the monster’s thighs, aiming for blood vessels, assuming they’d at least be in similar places, even if the blood flowing through them wasn’t. 

“Didn’t we tell you?” Alistair replied with effort, narrowly dodging the large hand that swiped at him, “There’s a storeroom, just chock full of them. That’s where they’r- ach - grown.” 

The ogre growled in response to their exchange, confused by their foreign language and enraged at their blades piercing its flesh. It took a large step back, pummeling the ground with its fists. The humans staggered back as they lost their footing, stumbling over and losing their weapons in the sudden earthquake. Suddenly the shuddering stopped when Morrigan brought down a frost that froze the ogre in place, one arm raised and about to strike, leaving the ground stable. 

“Aha!” Elissa shouted triumphantly, regaining her balance and grabbing her sword, “Thanks, Morrigan!”

The mage was already rolling her eyes, turning her gaze back to where Zevran was facing down four genlocks trying to rip his face off. The elf was most certainly  _ not  _ going to let that happen, and appreciated the lightning that was suddenly crashing down on his opponents’ heads. He gave a sly smile and continued his assault on the stunned darkspawn. 

“You say they’re  _ grown?”  _ Elissa said, ducking under the large frozen hand of the ogre to hack at its exposed ribs. 

“Hmm?” Alistair replied, taking advantage of the defenceless beast and striking at its weak points, “Oh right, yes. Grown. Like  _ plants.” _

Elissa laughed in response but it was abruptly cut off when the large fist above her head broke through the ice surrounding it and slammed down onto her. She cried out, crushed to the ground with ferocious force. The ogre ripped his other arm free of the frost keeping it in place and swung at Alistair, who leapt back quickly. 

“Elissa!” He shouted, only able to see her legs out from under that monstrous hand. 

The ogre closed his fist, bringing up her limp form in its large grip, her sword falling from her fingers. She dangled there, motionless for a moment, but then shook her head to clear it, regaining consciousness and opening her eyes. In front of her was the massive, horrifying grimace of the ogre eyeing her with its beady eyes. There was a moment of silence as she struggled in its grip, distressed by the look in its eyes. It watched her struggle, tightened its grip enough to hurt, and roared into her face, the force of it whipping her hair back around her. It brought its other grotesquely clawed hand up and started savagely beating her over and over, the sick thumping echoing off of the cold stone walls. 

“Elissa!” Alistair screamed again, renewing his attack against the ogre whilst its hands were out of the way.  _ Maker, don’t think of what those hands are doing,  _ he thought. “Morrigan, I need help!” He yelled across the field. 

Morrigan would have given some kind of sarcastic response, before she saw what was happening. “Zevran!” she shouted, directing his attention from the last dying darkspawn whilst she brought down fire upon the beast. 

The elf ran up beside Alistair, positioning himself behind the ogre to deliver more effective backstabs, trying not to let the severity of the situation get to him. He jumped up, sinking his daggers deep into the ogre’s back and slid down, carving two wicked wounds into its flesh, watching as the black blood spurted as he leapt back to the ground. 

The ogre screeched in response, ear-splittingly loud, and in a blind rage, beat the woman with more force and speed. Alistair could hear her bones crack as clear as day. 

“No! No, stop!” He cried out, heart thundering in his chest with panic. 

Alistair reared back, lining up his sword and running it through the beast’s ribcage. Blood and taint caught in the ogre’s throat as it collapsed to its knees, Elissa flopping from its grip, discarded as if she was nothing. The ogre let out one final, wet noise in its throat before falling backwards, hitting the floor with a loud boom that reverberated around the room. 

“No…” The warrior ran towards Elissa, tossing his sword and shield aside as he knelt down, bringing her head into his lap. “Elissa! Elissa, wake up!” 

Her face was destroyed, bones mangled so much that he almost didn’t recognise her anymore. Her armour had ruptured inwards, piercing into her chest and he could see her ribs, fractured and splintered. And the  _ blood.  _

_ So much blood. _

“Come on, come on. You’re okay!” He whimpered,  _ “Please _ be okay.” 

Morrigan and Zevran came up slowly behind him, afraid to look but looking nonetheless. They were completely stunned into silence, hearts frozen in shock.

“No no no no,” Alistair was murmuring, crying into the golden hair beneath his lips that was still wet with blood, “Please don’t leave me,” he whispered, pressing kisses onto her head, “I still need you,” he let out a soft sob,  _ “I love you.” _

Morrigan’s head snapped up at the sound of distant cries echoing down the corridor: the repetitive clank of metal against metal and chattering in a foreign tongue. More darkspawn. “We cannot linger,” she said, taking a step back. 

Alistair hugged the body in his arms tighter, raising a tear-stained face to look at her, “We can’t just _ leave  _ her!” He buried his face back behind his hunched shoulders, bringing Elissa closer to him. 

Morrigan’s eyes were still on the horizon, in the direction of the noises, making out a dark tunnel not far from them, “We must  _ go.” _

Alistair didn’t reply. 

“Don’t be so childish,” she snapped, “This could cost you your life.”

“How can you be this heartless? It’s  _ Elissa,  _ for Maker’s sake!”

The witch sighed angrily, glaring at the back of his head, “Yes, it’s Elissa. Meaning you’re the only Grey Warden left who even has a  _ chance _ of stopping this Blight - and that hope ends if you die here.” 

“She has a point, my friend. We need to get you out of here,” Zevran reasoned, in a less aggressive tone. 

“It’s Elissa,” he murmured, “Dear Maker,  _ it’s Elissa.  _ No, no-”

Morrigan slammed her staff into the ground, the harsh sound echoing around the room, “Zevran, get him up.” 

The elf nodded, putting his arms around the crying man and lifting him back. Alistair cried out as Elissa slipped from his grasp. He struggled in Zevran’s grip but he was fighting through tears and through his own grief and he didn’t have the strength. He was exhausted. 

“No, no! Elissa!” He cried, “I don’t- I can’t leave her! Elissa!” 

They ignored him, moving onwards through the caves, heading back to Orzammar. Morrigan led them out without looking back. 

How would they explain this back at camp? Where would they start?

**Author's Note:**

> I hope y'all enjoyed! Leave a comment or kudos if you have the time XD


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